1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a program guide generation apparatus, a program guide generation method and a program guide generation program, each for generating an electronic program guide based on program-related information being information related to broadcast programs.
2. Description of the Related Art
Upon a search for a broadcast program or a video content recorded in a recorder, an electronic program guide has been widely used in recent years to search for a desired video content by displaying the electronic program guide on a TV screen. Such a technology is described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2006-210965, for example. There may be a case that the layout of such an electronic program guide is displayed in a grid layout where times are placed in a vertical direction, broadcasting stations are placed in a horizontal direction, and placed in a position where a time coincides with a broadcasting station is program information on a program to be broadcast at the time by the broadcasting station. The layout is a format that imitates one called the Radio/TV listings that has been widely used in a program schedule in paper media such as news papers and magazines since before the advent of an electronic program guide. Therefore, users are familiar with the layout and can easily understand operations thereof.
Incidentally, in a program guide in the Radio/TV listings format, the position of a cell to display information on a program needs to be adjusted to a grid of a time corresponding to the broadcast time of the program. For example, in the case of a program broadcast from 0 o'clock to 1 o'clock, the top side of a cell displaying program information is adjusted to a position indicating 0 o'clock on a time axis of a program guide, the bottom side of the cell displaying program information is adjusted to a position indicating 1 o'clock on the time axis of the program guide. Information on the program is described in the cell size from 0 o'clock to 1 o'clock; however, there is a problem that all the information on the program cannot be displayed, depending on the cell size and the amount of the program information. Especially, the electronic program guide is mechanically generated; accordingly, it is difficult to design layout with flexibility as in a program schedule in paper media generated manually. Hence, an electronic program guide is often generated in the following layout (1) and (2).
(1) Layout where a cell size is fixed to a length determined by the duration of the broadcast to display only the amount of program information that can be displayed.
(2) Layout where a cell size expands in accordance with the program information.
The above layout of (1) and (2) have advantages and disadvantages, respectively. In the layout (1), in terms of the number of programs that can be displayed on one screen, more programs can be displayed than the layout (2) can since a size in the time axis direction is fixed regardless of the number of programs and the amount of program information. Moreover, the work of the operation of scrolling down a screen required when a program in the lower part of the program guide is wished to be displayed can be minimized. However, in the case of a program having a short broadcast duration, there is a problem that the information cannot be displayed and the cell size becomes too small to display even one character in some cases.
On the other hand, in the layout (2), it is possible to check all information on a program since a cell size expands in accordance with the program information. However, the size extends in the time axis direction of the program guide; accordingly, there is a problem that the number of programs to be displayed on one screen decreases. Moreover, it is necessary to repeat the operation of scrolling down the screen due to the expansion of the size in the time axis direction when a program in the lower part of the program guide is wished to be displayed.
Moreover, as an example application of the layout (1), a method where an area for displaying information on a program is provided in an area other than a program guide is used, too; however, the area needs to be displayed on a screen all the time, so that there is a problem that an area where a program guide can be displayed inevitably becomes small. Moreover, as a custom layout of (1), a method may also be employed that a minimum value of a cell size is set. However, this method, too, has a problem that only a part of program information can be displayed. Additionally, if a minimum value is set to be large, a problem similar to (2) arises.